Access: Denied.

For about a year now (could be more) I have been learning about God's Grace.

I grew up in a points-based system.
You either got points by being a good kid (and of course, love- by which I mean affection, compliments and favor), or you didn't.
It was easy to get the favor and love of my parents as long as you did all the "right" things. The not-so-easy part was figuring out what "all the right things" were.

Like-
*Was it right to make the bed first thing in the morning? Or could it wait until after breakfast? *Was it right to leave shoes lying on the ground? Or did they need to be put in the closet?
*Was it right to express your opinion? Or did you have to keep your mouth shut?
*Was it right to ask for a hug? Or should you leave your parents alone when they're tired?

Yeah, it was like that.
My parents suffered from a syndrome I like to call "too much fear, not enough trust". They didn't have anyone to trust their kids with (some parents trust their children to the Lord), so they feared for us to a fault- and made sure we didn't get the least bit out of line. There was NO grace in my house. If you made a mistake, you paid for it by getting ignored or losing your rights to affection. On top of that, no one ever let you forget your mistakes. NOT EVEN THE SMALL ONES. And when you grow up in a points-based system, you become a points-based person.
So I have very little grace.

But don't pity me! Not at all. The beauty of growing up in points-based system is that you will ALWAYS have more awe toward grace. I am always AMAZED at God's grace. It is so different than anything I knew growing up, and anything I could ever muster out of my own person. And it amazed me when my mom became a Christian and began to exhibit GRACE for me and our family members. It changed my family! And still is changing my family to this day.

The greatest thing in all the world, in all of history, is God's grace toward us. In the realization of how pathetic we really are, how little what we do (or have) is worth, and how much we truly deserve to be left alone to die somewhere (you might think this harsh, but it's true) God is not a points-based God. His grace overflows to us not just on the day of our salvation (for eternal life) but everyday thereafter.

God always sees us through the eyes of his grace.